You just swallowed plan B
by ReScripta
Summary: Plan B. But what was plan B before Beans swallowed the bullet? / One-shot.


**Well, in the movie you can see in the background, Rango watches how Mayor John aims a gun on Rattlesnake Jake and this gave me the idea for the little „What if"-story with a little theory for Plan B. Enjoy.**

 **(Sorry for grammatical errors, later corrections are possible.)**

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 **You just swallowed plan B**

Thoughtfully Rango went down the street. Since the water was back in town again many weeks had passed. Now it seemed to him as if he had been sheriff of that little place all along. Everyone knew him. Everybody greeted him like an old, familiar friend, as if he had never been a stranger. And despite of all, he felt so strange like a fish on land the most time. He tolerated neither permanent heat, nor cope a long time without water. But he blended in as good as he could. That was strongest strength of his kind right from the cradle. Blending in.

He stopped, when the town clock tolled 9.00 p. m.. The sky was dip-painted in red dim light and introduced the dusk.

Lost in thoughts the chameleon stood still on the sidewalk, arms akimbo and let wander his independent moving eyes over the street. The holes in the ground, which the water fountains had left, were as good as disappeared. Almost all water damages were repaired. Rango's glance wandered to a certain well-known building. He left his observation post and strolled without hast to the bank. He had never considered it possible but even the bank building looked as if it was never damaged, although there had been a big water explosion many weeks ago. The walls, the windows, the door, all were new and fully renovated.

At this moment, the door of the bank was opened and Mister Parsons stepped out. While coming out, the rodent sighted the sheriff.

"Oh, good evening, Sheriff Rango."

The chameleon nodded and touched his hat to him. "Good evening. Home time?"

Mister Parsons sighed. "Yes, fortunately. Since Mister Merrimack's passing way I'm forced to do all his work."

Rango sighed quietly. The banker's death still rankled him. Anyway, it had been his work to watch over the bank. Although it had been also Mister Merrimack's fault that he had poked his nose too deep into Mayor's matters and had paid for it with his life.

"Never mind," the sheriff said. "I will close the bank. I wanted to take a controlling look into the building anyway."

"A controlling look?" the bank assistant asked with surprise. "Why?"

"Pure routine."

Mister Parsons didn't want to ask more. He delivered Rango the keys and went away.

Rango squeezed the metallic object between his fingers and entered the building.

How often has he been entering the room? In the past very often. The last time where the Mayor had forced him and his Beans inside. Together with Bad Bill and his gang and also Jake, they wanted to murder him together with his girlfriend inside this building. He shivered with that thought if things had not turned out well.

With neutral researching gestures, he went from one window to the other one, to make sure that no one could open it. While this, he recognized the mirror picture of the vault in the glass of the windows. He turned around.

Even the heavy vault door was repaired.

With silent, he walked to the large sealing lock.

He would never forget how he was captured with Beans in this vault.

How he had throbbed against the door desperately.

 _"HELP! Open the door!"_

Nobody had shown pity. Even not Jake who he hadn't shot. He had kept a straight face. What had crossed the snake's mind at that moment? Had he ashamed about the chameleon's behavior? That he should die like a man?

He hadn't known. The eyes of the rattlesnake were a closed book to him. It was impossible to read something into them.

" _Okay, Plan B."_

Plan B?

Of course. Plan B was the bullet, which he had removed from his revolver before. But instead everything went different than originally planned.

Did Jake realize that he had removed the bullet?

Rango had guessed that Jake would have no use for Mayor John after that. Sheriffs and gunmen were part of the old Wild West. And if the Mayor wanted to sign off that time, then there was only one thing to do.

To eliminate them. Like he had done with Mister Merrimack.

 _"What are you building out here?"_

 _"The future, Mister Rango, the future. One day soon, and all this is going to fade into myth, the frontier town, the lawman, the gunslinger. There's just no place for them any more. We're civilised now."_

What would have happened, if Beans hadn't swallowed the bullet and the safe glass had never broken?

Rango closed his eyes. What would have happened?

He remembered. When they were inclosed, he had seen that Mayor John had pointed his revolver on Jake.

Exactly like Rango had assumed. Shortly after he had seen it, he had took out the bullet of his pants pocket. The Mayor had wanted to shoot Jake. And Rango's revolver came for the Mayor in the nick of time.

Such a coward, Rango thought.

Jake had wasted his munition. He had had no bullets anymore to fight back. Just his venom would be the last thing what he had used for his defence. But Mayor John had seized the moment of safety and aimed to Jake's surprise a gun on him. In this position, Jake's strongest venom had had no use. The Mayor would have shot, if Jake had made just one single movement.

And then?

Rango thought what he had planned what had need to happen after that. Or at least he had hoped.

The Mayor had shot and… of course, the magazine had been empty, because he had removed the bullet. A bad surprise for Mayor John.

Rango smiled softly. He would like to see his face, but he had been busy with Beans to press the bullet out of her.

The Mayor had been speechless when no shot came out of it. How could you shoot someone with an empty gun?

Rango didn't know what happened after that. Supposably Jake had laugh. At least after the first shock.

From the time, the glass had broken and had washed them all out of the bank.

Rango stopped his thoughts and rewinded all again, when Beans had kissed him so passionateing and he still had had the bullet in his mouth. But how had he resisted that kiss? She had only pressed her lips on his. Never before a being had kissed him that way in his life with so much love. Even not in his deepest, most romantics, and most erotic dreams. This one kiss let languish his body. He had rolled his eyes back, when their tongues touched each other lightly. At this moment, drowning didn't matter him anymore. It had been like a black out. Until she opened her eyes suddenly with shock and abrupt interrupted her intimate contact.

 _"What was that?"_

 _"No need to panic, but I think you just swallowed plan B."_

 _"WHAT!?"_

But what would have happened if Beans hadn't swallowed the bullet? What would have happened, if the glass had never broken?

Rango went back through his thoughts again.

Alright. The bullet hadn't stricken Jake, because the bullet was in the possession of him. What had happened after that had been the original of plan B.

Jake would have had bitten the Mayor or battered, if not he had killed him. Maybe also the same with Bill and his gang. But how he knew Bill, he would have run out of the bank.

When Jake had all hunted out or killed, he had looked at the vault. Rango would have been on the vault door and would have watched at him pleadingly or maybe better, he had shown the bullet in his hand.

Jake would become aware of that it was thanks to him that he was still alive. Rango had gotten his respect already.

Had Jake opened the vault door?

Rango opened his eyes and looked around in the bank room.

His glance wandered at the safe, which lay closed and repaired on the wall. Silently, he lay his hand on the heavy metallic lever.

Had Jake really opened the door?

Had it been misfortune or luck, that Beans had swallowed the bullet?

Had Jake really released him?

With sighing, he took the bullet out of his pants pocket, which had broken the safe door. This one bullet, which had fazinated Jake.

 _"One bullet. I tip my hat to you, one legend to another."_

Lost in thoughts, the chameleon left the bank and let rest his glance on the street, where all happened in the final showdown. The place had an effect of a peace and didn't convey the impression as if there never happened a historical incident there.

The sky wore twinkling stars. It was a beautiful sight in the desert, where there was far and wide almost no light. From a distance, he heard the voices from the saloon.

He began to shiver and hugged himself. It became cold outside. He marched to the jail, opened the door of the sheriff's office and went in.

Silently, he took off his uniform and laid himself on his bed. On the bed table burned the oil lamp. A while he stared at the ceiling.

Would Plan B have happened really like this, if Beans hadn't swallowed the bullet?

A question, which will maybe keep without an answer forever.

A while he dwelled on thoughts. Then he extinguished the light.

\- The end –

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 **Thanks for reading. :)  
**

 **You can read the original German text on fanfiktion de.**


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